Apparatus for the storage and distribution of cylindrical articles

ABSTRACT

Apparatus for storing and dispensing cylindrical articles to a transport line located alongside the apparatus comprising a storage unit which is mounted for vertical movement and is provided with a plurality of horizontally disposed vertically spaced shelves which are inclined towards the transport line and a transfer unit located between the shelves and the transport line having a member mounted for vertical movement between blocking and unblocking position with the member blocking the exit from the aligned shelf when in blocking position and freeing the exit when in unblocking position to permit transfer of an object from the shelf onto the surface thereof and which is adapted to effect transfer of said object from the surface thereof when the adjacent portion of the transport line is free, and means controlling vertical movement of the shelves responsive to the absence of an object on a shelf aligned with the transfer unit, said means being responsive to contacts to reverse the movement of the shelf when in its upper position and in its lower position and to control shelf movement by an increment corresponding to the spaced relationship between the shelves in the absence of an article on the aligned shelf.

United States Patent (72] Inventor Georges Duffeu Bordeaux-Caude1-an, France [21] App1.No. 847,836

[221 Filed Aug. 6, 1969 [45] Patented Aug. 10, 1971 [731 Assignee Societe De Couditionnemeut En Aluminium Paris, France [32] Priority Mar. 25, 1969 [33] France [54] APPARATUS FOR THE STORAGE AND DISTRIBUTION OF CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES 5 Claims, 4 Drawing Figs.

s21usc1 221/11, 214/164,22l/106,22l/l09,221/290 511 1111.0 (107:11/12 so FieldoiSearch 221/95,

3,165,230 1/1965 Hahn 3,426,415 2/1969 Countrymanetal.

ABSTRACT: Apparatus for storing and dispensing cylindrical articles to a transport line located alongside the apparatus comprising a storage unit which is mounted for vertical movement and is provided with a plurality of horizontally disposed vertically spaced shelves which are inclined towards the transport line and a transfer unit located between the shelves and the transport line having a member mounted for vertical movement between blocking and unblocking position with the member blocking the exit from the aligned shelf when in blocking position and freeing the exit when in unblocking position to permit transfer of an object from the shelf onto the surface thereof and which is adapted to effect transfer of said object from the surface thereof when the adjacent portion of the transport line is free, and means controlling vertical movement of the shelves responsive to the absence of an object on a shelf aligned with the transfer unit, said means being responsive to contacts to reverse the movement of the shelf when in its upper position and in its lower position and to control shelf movement by an increment corresponding to the spaced relationship between the shelves in the absence of an article on the aligned shelf.

PATENTED mm 0 I971 359 379 sum 1 UF 2 IN VENTOR. GEORGEJ Duff/1U PATENTED mm 0 IBYI sum 2 nr 2 Fig.3

JNVENTOR.

APPARATUS son THE STORAGE AND msrnrnu'rion F CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES This invention relates to an apparatus for the storage and distribution of cylindrical articles.

One useful application of apparatus of the type described resides in the packaging and the handling of objects which are in the form of elongated cylindrical members which have to be placed on a transport line. When carried by hand, this positioning normally requires constant work of a number of people.

It is an object of this invention to provide an apparatus which can be charged at regular or irregular intervals with elongate cylindrical articles and which operates automatically to dispense the articles onto a transport line.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will hereinafter appear and, for purposes of illustration, but not of limitation, an embodiment of the invention is shown in the'accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of an apparatus embodying the features of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of a portion of the apparatus showing the lifting device; and

FlG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line lV-IV of FIG. 2.

The present invention provides an apparatus which is adapted to store a large number of cylindrical articles in a small space parallel to the line of transport and which permits the objects to pass automatically one by one to the transport line.

For this purpose, the invention is addressed to an apparatus for storing a large number of cylindrical objects with a view towards their automatic distribution onto a transport line by means of a transferring device formed of astorage unit having a movable stand which comprises a plurality of parallel shelves which are slightly inclined to the horizontal in the direction towards the transport line and in which the shelves are each designed to receive a large number of cylindrical objects deposited parallel to the line of transport. One or the other of the shelves is adapted always to be in position to distribute the objects and included is a locking device which is movable between blocking position to prevent cylinders on the shelf from passing to the transport line as long as the line opposite the storage unit is not free, and an unblocking position which enables the cylindrical objects to pass one at a time onto the transport line when it is free, a motor means which provides for the displacement of the stand to replace an empty shelf with a full shelf in position in front of the locking device, and a reversing device which reverses the direction of displacement of the stand responsive to movement of the stand to one or the other of its end positions.

The locking device also serves as a transfer device and comprises a lifting member placed between the storage shelves and the line of transport and which is'mounted for reciprocating movement in a vertical direction, with the upper surface slightly inclined towards the line of transport.

The unblocking and transferring movement is controlled by a contact located on the line of transport in a position where it can control the movement of the end of the cylindrical bodies positioned on the transport line.

The locking device has a contact alongside the storage stand to detect the presence or absence of cylindrical objects on the shelf aligned with the transfer device with means for signalling the stand in response to the absence of such cylindrical objects.

The motor device is operatively connected to a reduction gearing engaging screw which supports the stand and which is parallel to the direction of movement of the stand. A rod having notches spaced by an amount corresponding to the spaced relation between the shelves'of the stand is positioned parallel ment of the stand while the other two operate to reverse the 7 with an opening to facilitate loading.

Referring now to the drawings for a detailed description of the apparatus, the storage device, in the form of a stand 1, is formed of a series of vertically spaced, horizontally disposed shelves 2 which are slightly inclined to the horizontal and extend over the entire width of the stand. The shelves are provided with openings 3 to facilitate loading of the cylindrical objects of a certain length onto the shelves. The stand rests on a movable platform 4 which is guided by rollers 5 along a vertically disposed plane 6. w

The platform is supported by a screw 7, the axis of which is perpendicular to the plane of the shelves 2. The screw is engaged by a nut which is actuated by reduction gearing 9 driven by motor 10 through connecting belts. Parallel to the screw is a notched rod 8.

The transport line 11 consists essentially of a bar 12 carryinga series of trapezoidal rollers 13 which are driven by a belt 14 placed in the base of their grooves. The transport line passes in front of the stand parallel to the axis of the cylindrical bodies loaded on the stand.

Between the stand and the transport line is a locking device which also serves as a transferring device. It consists of a lifting device 15 which is mounted for movement in a vertical direction with the upper surface 16 slightly inclined towards the transport line. The exits of the shelves above the locking device are blocked by fixed bands or plates 18, the height of reference to its use in combination with an apparatus for filling flexible packaging tubes. These tubes are very fragile when handled individually before filling. They are, therefore, manufactured to slightly conical shape which enables them to be nested into each other, thereby considerably increasing their resistance to damage by handling. These tubes have to be placed in the form of cylindrical sticks or rods on a transport line which carries them, before they are filled, to a separation station which is located at the end of the transport line, but which is not being described in the present application since it does not form a part of the invention.

The storage stand will be assumed to be filled with sticks of tubes, the first stick or rod having already been located on the transport line. 7

When the apparatus is put into operation, the tubes on the transport line move forward to the separation station and the stick consequently becomes shorter as the tubes are separated therefrom. When the last tube has passed beyond the contac 17, the contact is released and causes operation of the lifting device 15 which transfers the tubes. The position of this contact 17 is so selected that the arrival of a new stick of tubes on the transport line will not be obstructed by the tubes already on the line. On the other hand, the start of a new series can join onto the end of the preceding series, before the latter is completely separated, so that the first tube of the new stick becomes nested into the last tube of the preceding one. For this reason, the speed of forward movement of the line of transport is adapted to be slightly greater than the speed of movement at the separation station. The configuration of the transport line enables the tubes to slide slightly when they are stopped upon approaching the said station.

When at rest, the lifting device 15 assumes the position shown in FIG. 2, that is to say it blocks the exit from the aligned shelf of the stand.

in response to contact 17, the lifting device moves downwardly, for example, in response to actuation by a jack; the cylinder abutting the lifting device, representing the innermost cylinder of the row of cylinders on the aligned shelf, rolls under the action of gravity onto the upper surface 16 of the lifting device. This surface is dimensioned to have a width greater than the width of one cylinder but less than the width of two so as to receive only one cylinder at a time. This phase of movement is illustrated in FlG, 3. The lifting device ascends from its normal lowered position, with the surface 16 below the level of the transport line, to its starting position with the surface 16 above the level of the transport line. The stick of tubes which initially was held on the inclined surface 16 by the transport line 11 is thereby lifted sufficiently to be able to pass over the wide base of the rollers 13 to become cradled in the hollow of the transport line. At the same time, the now innermost cylinder on a shelf comes into abutment against the side of the lifting device. On the shelf side there is provided a contact 20 for detecting the presence of a new cylindrical body. If the reserve on the shelf is exhausted, the said contact is not made upon return of the lifting device to position of rest whereby the contact initiates operation of the motor which operates screw 7 by way of the reduction gearing 9 to displace the stand in the vertical direction. This movement is controlled by the contact 21 having a finger which follows the curvature of the notched rod 8 and which is effective to stop the operation of the motor after the displacement of the stand by an amount equal to the height between two parallel shelves. If the new shelf, which becomes aligned with the exit, contains at least one cylindrical body, its presence is signalled by abutment against the side of the lifting device and against the contact and further translation of the stand is stopped. The transferring device is now ready to assume its operation in response to the next signal from the contact 17. On the other hand, if the newly presented shelf is also empty, the contact 20 remains free and movement of the stand continues until a loaded shelf is found.

The movements of the stand are always in the same direction until it leaves the end of its position of adjustment. When the stand has arrived at this point, the notched rod intervenes, presenting two truncated cones 22 and 23 at the respective ends of the rods. The major diameter of the truncated cones 22 and 23 is greater than that of the intermediate cones. The truncated cone 22 makes contact 24 when the stand reaches the lowermost position and the other truncated cone 23 acts on contact 25 when the stand reaches its highest position. These two contacts cause reversal of the motor 10 to reverse the direction of movement of the stand.

Further, the contacts 24 and 25 are connected to actuate a warning signal to announce that reloading of the shelves may be necessary.

It will be understood that it is not necessary to wait until all of the shelves are empty before reloading. Reloading can be carried out at any moment on any of the shelves by the opera tor in attendance of the apparatus.

In the apparatus described as an example, the time for completely emptying a load is about 1 hour. In other uses, this time will be a function of the size of the articles which may be stacked, as in the illustration, for example capsules, beakers, etc., but which may equally be placed side by side or even form a whole designed to be cut at the work station.

It will be understood that certain parts of the machine may be replaced by others capable of equivalent function. For example, the notched rod 8 may be replaced by another system for opening and closing the contacts and the screw which acts on the stands may be replaced by ajack and the like.

It will be further stood that changes may be made in the details of construction, arrangement and operation without departing from the spirit of the invention, especially as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for storing and dispensing cylindrical objects to a transport line located alongside the apparatus comprising a storage unit and a transfer unit, said storage unit comprising a stand mounted for movement in the vertical direction between raised and lowered positions, a plurality of horizontally disposed vertically spaced shelves on said stand with the shelves being slightly inclined towards the transport line to permit movement of the ob ects towards an exit opening between each of the shelves and in which the shelves are dimensioned to receive a large number of such cylindrical objects positioned thereon parallel to the transport line, said transfer unit, interposed between the shelves and the transport line, comprising a member mounted for vertical movement between blocking position and unblocking position to block the exit from an aligned shelf when in blocking position and to free the exit when in unblocking position to permit transfer of an object from the shelf to the transport line when the latter is free in front of the shelf, and having a horizontally disposed upper surface inclined in the direction of the transport line, said upper surface being below the shelf exit when the unit is in unblocking position to receive the innermost object on the shelf onto the inclined surface thereof and above the exit when in blocking position, and a drive means operatively con nected to the stand for vertical displacement of the stand between raised and lowered positions, means movable with the stand for controlling operation of the drive means for incremental movement of the stand by an amount corresponding to the spaced relation between shelves and for reversing direction of movement of the stand in response to movement to upper and lower positions.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which the surface is below the transport line when in unblocking position to prevent transfer of an object from said surface to the transport line and above the transport line when in blocking position to permit the object to roll from the surface onto the transport line.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 which includes detector means positioned along the transport line in position to be engaged by objects on said line, means responsive to said detector and operatively engaging the transfer unit for effecting movement between blocking and unblocking position.

4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 which includes detector means in position to be engaged by objects when present on the shelf in position for transfer of objects to the transport line, and power means being responsive to said detector means for effecting displacement of the stand in the absence of contact of said detector means by an object carried by the aligned shelf.

5, Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which the means-controlling operation of the drive means includes a verticall disposed notched control rod and contacts adapted to be engaged by said control rod during movement of the stand between raised and lowered positions, with one contact en gaged when in raised position, another contact engaged when in lowered position and a third contact engaged when the stand has moved vertically a distance corresponding to the vertically spaced relation between the shelves. 

1. Apparatus for storing and dispensing cylindrical objects to a transport line located alongside the apparatus comprising a storage unit and a transfer unit, said storage unit comprising a stand mounted for movement in the vertical direction between raised and lowered positions, a plurality of horizontally disposed vertically spaced shelves on said stand with the shelves being slightly inclined towards the transport line to permit movement of the objects towards an exit opening between each of the shelves and in which the shelves are dimensioned to receive a large number of such cylindrical objects positioned thereon parallel to the transport line, said transfer unit, interposed between the shelves and the transport line, comprising a member mounted for vertical movement between blocking position and unblocking position to block the exit from an aligned shelf when in blocking position and to free the exit when in unblocking position to permit transfer of an object from the shelf to the transport line when the latter is free in front of the shelf, and having a horizontally disposed upper surface inclined in the direction of the transport line, said upper surface being below the shelf exit when the unit is in unblocking position to receive the innermost object on the shelf onto the inclined surface thereof and above the exit when in blocking position, and a drive means operatively connected to the stand for vertical displacement of the stand between raised and lowered positions, means movable with the stand for controlling operation of the drive means for incremental movement of the stand by an amount corresponding to the spaced relation between shelves and for reversing direction of movement of the stand in response to movement to upper and lower positions.
 2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which the surface is below the transport line when in unblocking position to prevent transfer of an object from said surface to the transport line and above the transport line when in blocking position to permit the object to roll from the surface onto the transport line.
 3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 which includes detector means positioned along the transport line in position to be engaged by objects on said line, means responsive to said detector and operatively engaging the transfer unit for effecting movement between blocking and unblocking position.
 4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 which includes detector means in position to be engaged by objects when present on the shelf in position for transfer of objects to the transport line, and power means being responsive to said detector means for effecting displacement of the stand in the absence of contact of said detector means by an object carried by the aligned shelf.
 5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which the means-controlling operation of the drive means includes a vertically disposed notched control rod and contacts adapted to be engaged by said control rod during movement of the stand between raised and lowered positions, with one contact engaged when in raised position, another contact engaged when in lowered position and a third contact engaged when the stand has moved vertically a distance corresponding to the vertically spaced relation between the shelves. 